UPDATE: Blagojevich receives birthday presents of Facebook support for healthcare

Wow. What a difference a day and a blog post makes!

Only a day after I pointed out that Gov. Rod Blagojevich was all alone on Facebook in his holy Web 2.0 crusade to get the people of Illinois healthcare, he's received 169 additional supporters for his group, "I Support Healthcare."

(Click images for full screenshots)

Before:

And.... after:

Looks like some of the 2,148 "Friends of Blagojevich" decided to take my advice and give him an early birthday present (much more preferred over Facebook gifts). Keep it up guys!

Wait, what's that? He doesn't have 2,148 friends anymore?

Why did this unknown supporter leave? I've got a theory: Maybe it was because Blagojevich prefers watching the Blackhawks game instead of watching a "rigged" game in the Illinois House.

(Cross posted to my blog. E-mail me or Facebook me!)

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EXPOSING BLAGOJEVICH: Is his approach an obstacle for Facebook popularity?

Mike Flannery's report on how Gov. Rod Blagojevich goes to Blackhawks games instead of being present in Springfield for mass-transit funding legislative action has gathered quite a bit of attention. And it's deserved. After all, when was the last time you remember your local nightly news devoted 7 minutes and 55 seconds to a single-topic story dealing with a politician that didn't involve a scandal or election? My understanding is that this sort of thing is unheard of or at least rare in TV news.

While many are drawing their own conclusions about how Blagojevich's stay-at-home governing style is affecting important issues like the CTA, I thought this wouldn't be a bad time to look at the lighter side. For instance, how has his Facebook popularity fared? (Please note, you'll need a Facebook account to view some links.)

Blagojevich is the sole member of the Facebook group "I Support Healthcare," of which he is the creator.

(Click for the full-size group page)

The group's profile makes this statement:

"This group is for people who want to work to make affordable, quality healthcare for everyone a reality."

Despite having 2,148 "Friends of Blagojevich" that support him on his Facebook profile, the governor is alone in supporting healthcare.

(Click to see a full-size image)

That's right. Not a single of his supporters on Facebook has joined his group to support healthcare, despite Blagojevich being the 18th most popular sitting governor on Facebook.

How can his lack of support on Facebook be explained? Could this be a result of his "inaccessibility" by not checking his profile often enough and posting on his supporter's walls? Is this a sign of his "poor skills at building relationships" surfacing not only in Springfield, but also in the complicated world of Web 2.0? Is his "lack of interest in details" of items in his supporters' News Feed updates driving people away from Facebook groups he creates?

I should point out that Rod's birthday is coming up in 11 days, so maybe some of his closest 2,148 supporters on Facebook can post on his wall and join his "I Support Healthcare" group as a birthday gift.

(Cross posted to my blog. E-mail me or Facebook me!)

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